Photography News

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Olympus today announced the newest addition to their PEN line of micro- DSLR cameras, the PEN E-PM1 or "PEN mini" features a 12.3 megapixel sensor, 12,800 ISO (!) and full 1080i HD video in stereo.

It will retail for $499.99 with body and lens (14-42mm) as well as the FL-LM1 Flash. Availability is expected this September.

For more details, read the full press release below.

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Well this is just plain stupid. Canon has forced the site "Canon Filmmakers" to close down using legal action. How mentioning the name "Canon" in a site name is an infringement on that company is a mystery to anyone who can think.

The site was all about techniques for shooting video with Canon's oddly excellent DSLR products. Oddly, because while the technology is great, the suits seems to have no brains when it comes to public relations.

Alas, CanonFilmmakers.com is going the way of film as have others that have dared to align themselves with Canon.

Read more about it at their farewell blog post: http://canonfilmmakers.com/blog/2011/06/01/all-good-things-must-come-to-an-end/

This makes me happy I shoot Pentax.

Adobe's Lightroom is amazing for editing photos in a non-destructive manner and makes RAW processing a breeze. But one thing that was always missing was Photoshop's powerful layers feature. Now the ability to stack and blend various edits within Lightroom has been realized thanks to OnOne's upcoming release Perfect Layers.

The add-in for Lightroom is now in public preview (which you can download from http://www.ononesoftware.com/products/suite/perfect-layers/?photographyvoice.com). Support for Bridge and Aperture will be included upon actual release. The preview is available for both PC and Mac.

Several webinars are being offered to demonstrate the power of Perfect Layers. Check out the schedule at: http://www.ononesoftware.com/webinars/

Adobe sends word of their latest free updates to the Lightroom/Camera Raw processing tools.

Adobe today announced the Lightroom 3.4 and Camera Raw 6.4 updates are available for immediate download on Adobe.com. Originally posted as release candidates on Adobe Labs, the final updates bring raw file support to 13 popular camera models including Canon EOS Rebel T3i, Nikon D5100 and Fuji FinePix X100, and add over 25 new lens profiles to help photographers automatically correct unwanted distortion and chromatic aberration.

In addition, the Lightroom 3.4 and Camera Raw 6.4 updates address a number of issues reported by customers on the previous releases. Adobe encourages the community to provide feedback on the updates so it can ensure the highest quality experience for customers working on diverse hardware and software configurations. To that end, Adobe recently announced the integration of Get Satisfaction customer community and interaction software support on Photoshop.com, which lets users provide real-time feedback and requests for the entire Adobe Digital Imaging family of products. These new community support features can be accessed by choosing Product Feedback from the Products menu on Photoshop.com, by visiting http://feedback.photoshop.com/login, or on the Lightroom Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/lightroom?sk=app_144421742246079.

Lightroom is the essential digital photography workflow solution, helping serious amateur and professional photographers quickly import, manage, enhance and showcase all their images within one application. The Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in provides fast and easy access to raw image formats produced by many leading digital cameras.

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Those of you in or near the Washington DC area still have time to capture the beauty of the district's famous Cherry Blossoms and submit to the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival's Photo contest.

Full details follow, but you have until April 9, 2011 to get your entry in. [MORE]

OnOne Software has announced the latest version of its Perfect Resize 7, the resizing tool formerly named Genuine Fractals. The application features improved resizing up to 800% without reduced quality.

Right now, you can take advantage of special pricing, saving $50 on the standard version and $100 on the professional. [MORE]

Panasonic sends word on the pricing for four recently announced cameras due out later this month.

The models include the 3D capable LUMIX DMC-ZS10, LUMIX DMC-ZS8, LUMIX DMC-TS3 cameras and the touchscreen enabled LUMIX DMC-FX78. [MORE]

Today Olympus announces the release of firmware updates for the E-PL2 and E-5.

E-PL2

Today’s version 1.1 update for the E-PL2 allows for increased control when using the new Add-on Conversion Lenses. The update changes the default setting of the Image Stabilizer to “On” when a photographer selects converter lens scene modes Fisheye (for use in conjunction with Fish-eye Lens Converter FCON-37), Wide-Angle (with Wide-angle Lens Converter WCON-37), and Macro (with Macro Lens Converter MCON-58).

E-5

Today’s version 1.1 update for the E-5 ensures that the camera’s LCD monitor’s color compensation will not be automatically reset.

To download and install these firmware updates, simply launch Olympus camera software and connect the camera via USB cable to an internet connected computer. Choose the Update function from the Camera menu in the software and the update for camera bodies, lenses and accessories can be effected.

The ability to update the firmware of E-System and PEN components -- bodies, lenses, flash units -- is one of the key advantages of a 100% digital design. Firmware updates are available through Olympus Master, Olympus Studio and Olympus' standalone firmware updater.

Lensbaby sends word of their new Lensbaby "Sweet 35" optic that works with existing optic-swap Lensbaby units and allows photographers the ease of dynamic aperture control. The current optics use the swappable magnetic aperture rings.

Now you can go from f2.5 to f22 by simply rotating the aperture ring and the fin blades adjust accordingly. You can then see the sweet spot of the focus adjust through your viewfinder to insure you get the shot you want.

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Received from Bibble Labs this morning

Bibble 5.2.1 Update Just Released

Adding Support for Canon's Newest Cameras & More

In an effort to provide the fastest support for new cameras, we're happy to provide Bibble 5.2.1, available now, with support for Canon's 600D and 1100D, (also known as the T3 and T3i or Kiss X5 and Kiss X50). This release also resolves issues found in previous versions of Bibble 5, and is a free upgrade for all Bibble 5 customers.

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On the heels of the Lightroom 3.3 update, Adobe has also released an update for their flagship Photoshop CS5 (v12) product. The 12.0.2 update addresses several performance issues (i.e. bugs) including:

• A number of potential security vulnerabilities have been addressed
  
• Top type and font crashers found in the field have been addressed
  
• A number of performance issues have been addressed
  
• Crash opening 3D layers has been addressed
  
• Color Engine crash has been resolved
  
• Intermittent file format issues addressed
  
• Shift scrolling bug fixed
  
• Sharpen crasher fixed
  
• Marching ants not seen at certain zoom levels fixed
  
• Metadata focus distance issue addressed
  
• File info bug addressed for Orphea Studio jpg's
  
• TWAIN crashers fixed
  
• Brush cursor bug fixed
  
• Histogram progress bar issue fixed
  
• Droplet issues addressed

Download via the Adobe Updater or their update site: http://www.adobe.com/downloads/updates/

Adobe has announced the availability of free upgrades of Lightroom 3.3 and Camera Raw 6.3. These updates include new camera and lens profiles as well as bug fixes.

Cameras included:

• Canon PowerShot G12
  
• Canon PowerShot S95
  
• Nikon D3100
  
• Nikon D7000
  
• Nikon Coolpix P7000
  
• Olympus E-5
  
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF2
  
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2
  
• Pentax K-5
  
• Pentax K-r
  
• Ricoh GXR, GR LENS A12 28mm F2.5
  
• Samsung NX100
  
• Samsung TL350 (WB2000)
  
• Sony A560
  
• Sony A580

Full details can be found at: http://blogs.adobe.com/lightroomjournal/2010/12/lightroom-3-3-and-camera-raw-6-3-now-available.html

Downloads are available at: http://www.adobe.com/downloads/updates/

Sigma Corporation of America now accepting Scholarship Contest applications

High school seniors vie for $5,000 cash prize, $1,000 in photography products

Ronkonkoma, NY, Nov. 30, 2010 – Sigma Corporation of America is currently accepting photo and application submissions for its second annual Scholarship Contest. The contest, which will award $6,000 in cash and photography gear, is open to all high school seniors who plan to pursue a photo-related career.

Applications for the contest are now being accepted through Feb. 28, 2011 via the Sigma scholarship website. [MORE]

Portland, OR – November 23, 2010 – Lensbaby announces today the release of its first storage and organizational carrying case made specifically for the Lensbaby system. The Lensbaby System Bag is a sturdy, yet flexible bag that allows photographers the ability to access their Lensbaby products quickly and easily.

The Lensbaby System Bag measures 10.25” X 4” X 3.5” and is a one-stop carrying system that can accommodate any Lensbaby lens (Muse, Control Freak, Composer, Scout and Composer with Tilt Transformer), optic or accessory. The sides of the bag feature an easy-access corner flap that enables access to frequently used products. [MORE]

Adobe just announced the the third version of their masterful photo editing tool "Lightroom" has officially been released today.

The non-destructive photo editor allows you to make changes to your photos without altering the underlying RAW or JPG files. Full retail versions will run $299 and upgrades $99.

 [MORE]

Adobe has posted a cool video of adventure photographer Tyler Shackelford not only doing a photo shoot from a vertical wall of ice, but he's processing those image with the upcoming Lightroom 3 (using Beta 2 that is available for public trial).


He demonstrates his workflow with Lightroom 3 that allows him to process up to 3000 photos per session (gasp!) quickly and efficiently.

Check out the video here:

The people at Zoner Software have informed us that they have released "Zoner Photo Studio Free", an introductory version of their Photo Studio editing and management software. You can download the fully free copy at http://free.zoner.com/ via the LINK below.

Full details on the Zoner line of editing software follows: [MORE]

Owners of the Spyder3 color calibration tool will be thrilled to learn the software has been upgraded to an all new version 4.0. At a reasonable upgrade price of only $19 for an instant download, the new version offers the following features:

• New Workflow Features


• Software Brightness Control


• Automated Brightness Adjustment


• Iterative Gray Balance Option


• Display Graphing


• Monitor Quality Analyzer

The full press release can be read after the jump. [MORE]

At the stroke of midnight, Adobe formally announced the latest edition of their Photoshop series, the all new CS5. It features internal HDR toning, content aware fill and something called puppet warp. For more details, read on. [MORE]

This has got to be one of the coolest features for Photoshop CS5 I've seen so far. Content-Aware Fill allows you to remove items from your screen, and have Photoshop intelligently fill in the space they left behind. Quite amazing. Check this video on Youtube.

Topaz Labs has issued a free upgrade to v4.0 of their Adjust tool. The update includes new presets, a new user interface, and algorithm enhancements.

If you're not yet a Topaz Adjust user, then you can buy now for a special $10 off price.

For more details, see below... [MORE]

Panasonic unveiled details on thee new slim cameras due mid-March 2010. They are the DMC-T52, DMC-ZS7, and the DMC-ZS5 and retail between $299.95 and $399.95. [MORE]

Interested high-school seniors who are pursuing a photo-related degree have one more weekend to get their submissions in for Sigma's scholarship competition. One winner will received $5,000 in college money and $1,000 in Sigma gear. Entry deadline is this Monday, February 15 2010. [MORE]

Tripod manufacturer Induro has announced a new line of tripod heads that take a departure from traditional pan- or ball-heads. A gimbal head "has some unique characteristics enabling it to do things other heads can’t. The camera and lens, because of this unique weightless state, can be tilted up or down and stay in that position without the need to be locked in place."

Three new gimbals are offered, ranging from $200 to $489. [MORE]